Independent relationship between amyloid precursor protein (APP) dimerization and γ-secretase processivity

PLoS One. 2014 Oct 28;9(10):e111553. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0111553. eCollection 2014.

Abstract

Altered production of β-amyloid (Aβ) from the amyloid precursor protein (APP) is closely associated with Alzheimer's disease (AD). APP has a number of homo- and hetero-dimerizing domains, and studies have suggested that dimerization of β-secretase derived APP carboxyl terminal fragment (CTFβ, C99) impairs processive cleavage by γ-secretase increasing production of long Aβs (e.g., Aβ1-42, 43). Other studies report that APP CTFβ dimers are not γ-secretase substrates. We revisited this issue due to observations made with an artificial APP mutant referred to as 3xK-APP, which contains three lysine residues at the border of the APP ectodomain and transmembrane domain (TMD). This mutant, which dramatically increases production of long Aβ, was found to form SDS-stable APP dimers, once again suggesting a mechanistic link between dimerization and increased production of long Aβ. To further evaluate how multimerization of substrate affects both initial γ-secretase cleavage and subsequent processivity, we generated recombinant wild type- (WT) and 3xK-C100 substrates, isolated monomeric, dimeric and trimeric forms of these proteins, and evaluated both ε-cleavage site utilization and Aβ production. These show that multimerization significantly impedes γ-secretase cleavage, irrespective of substrate sequence. Further, the monomeric form of the 3xK-C100 mutant increased long Aβ production without altering the initial ε-cleavage utilization. These data confirm and extend previous studies showing that dimeric substrates are not efficient γ-secretase substrates, and demonstrate that primary sequence determinants within APP substrate alter γ-secretase processivity.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

  • Amyloid Precursor Protein Secretases / metabolism*
  • Amyloid beta-Protein Precursor / metabolism*
  • Animals
  • CHO Cells
  • Cricetinae
  • Cricetulus
  • Culture Media, Conditioned / chemistry
  • Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay
  • Mass Spectrometry
  • Mutation
  • Protein Multimerization
  • Protein Structure, Tertiary
  • Recombinant Proteins / chemistry

Substances

  • APP protein, human
  • Amyloid beta-Protein Precursor
  • Culture Media, Conditioned
  • Recombinant Proteins
  • Amyloid Precursor Protein Secretases